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MORE HUNGRY MOUTHS TO FEED

Most of us have filled ourselves silly with the bounty of the season, and there's nothing wrong with that  unless you're going around whining about your tight pants and unsightly bulges. Really, who cares, except for peddlers of diet products?

Try and transcend your self-indulgence and the need to complain about it by adding this positive note: "And so, I've decided to donate $5 to the Second Harvest Food Bank of Central Florida as a reminder of how lucky I am, unlike so many other people living right here in my own community."

Here are some localized facts from Second Harvest studies that might help you make that statement: (1) There are more than 450 nonprofit agencies in the six-county Central Florida area dedicated to feeding hungry people. (2) One in 10 Central Florida residents has a need to ask for assistance with food during the course of a year. (3) Women, children and the working poor are the populations that face the highest risks for being hungry. (4) 44 percent of households seeking food assistance have a family member working full time. (5) Children under the age of 18 make up 28 percent of the people receiving food assistance.

Five bucks of your cash equals $8 worth of food distributed is another encouraging statistic provided by Second Harvest on its website, which features a quick and easy download of a donation form. Or call the organization's main number and make arrangements from there. And be thankful if the reality of thousands of starving kids adds some starch to that New Year's resolution to lose weight. www.foodbankcentralflorida.org